Garbage truck



GARBAGE TRUCK Filed D60. 12, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.1

INVENTORS: A. Riedl 4 G. Schtiff'ler BY 9 I Z Ar rrs.

A. RIEDL ETAL GARBAGE TRUCK Sept. 7, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 12, 1963 5 r M. w N A m? United States Patent Office 3,Zfi4 ,789 Patented Sept. 7, 1965 3,204,789 GARBAGE TRUCK v Alois Riedl and Georg Schiiefler, Augsburg, Germany,

assignors to Keller & Knappich 'Geseilschaft mit beschriinkter Haftung, Augsburg, Germany, a corporation of Germany Filed Dec. 12, 1963, Ser. No. 330,045 Claims priority, application Germany, June 16, 1963,

48,708 6 Claims. (Cl. 214-8332) The present invention concerns a garbage truck having a non-rotatable collecting container with a filling opening and a face cover, a conveyor wheel being rotatably mounted below the filling opening in a cover extension adapted to be pivoted away from the collecting container.

In a known construction of this kind the conveyor wheel has two annular end face surfaces, between which partitions are arranged in intervals which turn the conveyor wheel into a bladed wheel, the inner open generating surface of which is covered outwardly by a cylinder jacket insert of the cover with the exception of its filling opening. This bladed wheel is emptied inwardly in the direction of the collecting container due to the force of gravity. To distribute the garbage so charged over the whole length of the elongated collecting container there is used a distributing worm rotating below the cover.

The efficiency of this garbage truck is limited: large bulky items which stick out substantially beyond the size of the bladed wheel and therefore cannot be loaded. Items which become wedged in the compartments cannot be forcibly cleared in the direction of the interior of the container, so that filled compartments rotate below the filling which obstructs or completely stops any further loading. Inadequate pressing effect is obtained with the distributing screw below the collecting container cover, which prevents the load capacity of the vehicle from being economically used. 1

All these limitations are not present in an alternative type of known garbage truck, wherein the collecting container is constructed as a rotary drum and the rear nonrotatable pivotable closure cover provided with a truncated hollow cone projecting into the collecting container and having a filling opening below, on the outer jacket surface of the cone a helical scraping surface extending from the upper apex of the cone to beyond the whole filling opening at the inner plane of the truncated cone, the scraping surface being so radially widened that its outer edge is spaced equidistantly relative to the engaging ribs of low and constant height arranged on the inner wall surface of the rotary drum and revolving therewith.

Herewith the scraping surface projecting into the revolving annular cavity not only brings about a forcible clearing of garbage wedged between the low engaging ribs, but, by virtue of its progressive radial widening with the progressive approach to the interior of the collecting container, also imparts a powerful push against the garbage disposed in the container, so that a pressing action heretofore not considered possible takes place which extends over the whole length of the collecting container.

Whilst this effect has been considered possible heretofore when using a rotary drum as collecting container, the invention is based on the knowledge that it is also possible to obtain the high compression even when the collecting container is non-rotatable. This knowledge moreover is surprising because therewith a constant sweeping of the garbage disposed in the container past the helical-shaped scraping surface on a circular path is omitted. As however confirmed by experiments the newly conveyed and added garbage, which in any case is carried past the scraping surface, alone is enough to impart to the garbage load the required high tamping.

Accordingly the present invention is characterised in that the conveyor wheel which is of cylindrical or conically inwardly tapering configuration has low and constant height engaging ribs, the wheel being adapted to rotate about a hollow truncated conical part of the cover which has the filling opening arranged therebelow, a scraping surface projecting into an annular conveying cavity between the conveying wheel and outer jacket of the hollow conical part on the outer jacket side of the cover which scraping surface extends helically from an upper apex at the inner plane of the truncated conical ,part, it being radially widened in such a manner that its outer edge maintains the same slight equidistant spacing relative to the ribs.

The conveyor wheel thus expediently projects slightly beyond the butt joint of the pivotable cover extension into the interior of the container, whereby the driving and bearing elements are adapted more readily to be sealed against the interior of the collecting container.

For discharging, the collecting container, opened by upwardly pivoting the cover extension may be either tippable or forcibly cleared by an expelling piston, the latter step, with the high compression, being the more effective and reliable one.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal section through a garbage truck, constructed in accordance with the invention, during loading;

PIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-section on the AA of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is .a longitudinal section of the garbage truck during unloading, and

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view partly in section of the cover extension showing the charging opening with the truck body or container diagrammatically shown by dotted lines. v

A collecting container 2 is mounted on the chassis of a vehicle 1 so as to be non-rotatable. The container 2 is adapted to be tipped about a pivot pin arranged near the rear axle of the vehicle 1. The cross-section of the collecting container 2 is preferably quadrangular or square, whereby with practicable inside volumetric dimension of a vehicle a maximum cubic capacity becomes usable. A cover extension 3 is provided at the rear end face of the container 2 and is adapted to be hinged upwardly about a pivotal axis 4 for unloading; otherwise the cover extension 3 is fixedly connected to the collecting container for loading. Four guide roller pairs 5 are mounted in the cover extension 3. A cylindrical or, as shown in the drawing, slightly conical or inwardly tapering conveyor wheel 6 is mounted in an axial and radial direction on the guide roller pairs 5. The rotary drive of the conveyor wheel 6 is effected via pinion 7 and spur ring 8 or by means of a gear wheel chain by a hydraulic or other motor mounted in the cover extension 3 and not shown in the drawing. Low ribs 9 each having a triangular profile of constant overall height are mounted on the inner surface of the conveyor wheel 6 so as to be disposed (crosswise whereby), in the direction of rotation D they tend to convey from the outside into the interior of the container 2. The conveyor wheel 6 revolves about a hollow cone 10, which is cranked inwardly or fixed to the non-rotatable cover. The cone 10 has a filling opening 11 at the bottom and a hollow annular cavity provided between the inner jacket thereof and the conveyor wheel 6. A helical-shaped scraping and pressing surface 12 projects into the cavity and extends on the outer jacket of the hollow cone 10 from its apex S on the outer cover side to beyond the filling opening 11 (point B) at the inner truncated cone end and thereby is progressively widened, so that its edge 13 constantly maintains equidistant intervals from the engaging ribs 9. The conveyor Wheel 6 projects slightly over the butt joint between a containerside closure wall 14 of the cover extension 3 and the open end face of the collecting container 2 into the latter, so that a stufling box packing is effectively mounted at 15.

For unloading, in accordance with FIG. 3 the cover extension 3 is pivoted upwards about the axle 4 and, by means of a telescopic power piston rod mechanism 16, 17, the expelling piston 17 pushed through the interior of the collecting container. If a rotating distributor screw is arranged below the cover of the collecting container 2, then the expelling piston 17 is recessed in its upper region. Discharging with the expelling piston takes place rapidly because the clearing is positive.

Restricting the rotary region when loading to the short conveyor wheel 6 causes only slight noise, which more- .over may be kept remote from the collecting container by small silencing intermediate layers.

To enable large bulky items to be rapidly loaded a large area door 18, which preferably reaches to the base 19 of the container is expediently arranged in one or both side walls of the collecting container between the retracted expelling piston 17 and the rear loading device. If such items are loaded through the side doors after part filling has taken place, then the expelling piston 17 is first advanced with the rear coverclosed to such an extent that the collecting container space is cleared in the region of the door opening, whereupon the expelling piston is retracted and now the large bulky item pushed in through the door.

A garbage truck equipped in this manner is'of universal use, for the smallest loose material to the most bulky and largest items, the loading operation being adapted to be carried out in the shortest time.

What we claim is: v

1. A garbage truck comprising an elongated non-rotatable collecting container, a cover movably secured to said container and normally closing a rear end thereof, a conveyor wheel for forcibly charging said container with refuse, means mounting said conveyor wheel for rotation relative to said cover, means for rotating said conveyor wheel, said conveyor wheel having a plurality of trash-engaging ribs, said conveyor wheel being of a conical configuration tapering convergingly towardsaid container, a generally hollow cone internally of said toward said cone, a filling opening in said cone and said cone further including a helicalshaped scraping surface between opposite end portions of said cone.

2. A garbage truck comprising an elongated non-rotatable collecting container having an open rear end, a hinged cover closing said open rear end, a truncated cone on said cover projecting into said open end, a helical-shaped scraping bafiie of the cone being directed toward the interior of said conveyor, a conveyor wheel surrounding said cone for forcibly charging said container with refuse,means mounting said conveyor wheel for rotation relative to said cone, means for rotating said 'wheel, and said wheel having a plurality of trash-engaging ribs directed toward said cone in angularly disposed relation to the axis of rotation of said wheel.

3. The garbage truck as defined in claim 2 wherein said rotating means comprises a gear ring surrounding an exterior surface of said wheel, and a driving gear in mesh with said gear ring.

4. The barbage truck as defined in claim 2 wherein said mounting means comprises a plurality of guide rollers carried by said cover, and each roller being in guiding contact with an exterior guide surface portion of said wheel.

5. The garbage truck. as defined in claim 2 ,wherein said rotating means comprises a gear ring surrounding an exterior surface of said wheel, and a driving gear is in mesh with said gear ring, and said mounting means includes roller means carried by said cover in guiding contact with an exterior surface portion of said wheel.

6. The garbage truck as defined in claim 2 wherein the cover is pivotally connected tothe container and the conveyor wheel protrudes beyond thepivotal connection at least slightly into the interior of the container.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS HUGO O. SCHULZ, Primary Examiner.

GERALD FORLENZA, Examiner. 

1. A GARBAGE TRUCK COMPRISING AN ELONGATED NON-ROTATABLE COLLECTING CONTAINER, A COVER MOVABLY SECURED TO SAID CONTAINER AND NORMALLY CLOSING A REAR END THEREOF, A CONVEYOR WHEEL FOR FORCIBLY CHARGING SAID CONTAINER WITH REFUSE, MEANS MOUNTING SAID CONVEYOR WHEEL FOR ROTATION RELATION TO SAID COVER, MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID CONVEYOR WHEEL, SAID CONVEYOR WHEEL HAVING A PLURALITY OF TRASH-ENGAGING RIBS, SAID CONVEYOR WHEEL BEING OF A CONICAL CONFIGURATION TAPERING CONVERGINGLY TOWARD SAID CONTAINER, A GENERALLY HOLLOW CONE INTERNALLY OF SAID WHEEL AND FIXED TO SAID COVER, SAID RIBS BEING DIRECTED. TOWARD SAID CONE, A FILLING OPENING IN SAID CONE AND SAID CONE FURTHER INCLUDING A HELICAL-SHAPED SCRAPING SURFACE BETWEEN OPPOSITE END PORTIONS OF SAID CONE. 